PCNE Practice Question: Designing, planning, and prototyping a GCP network
This PCNE practice question tests your understanding of designing, planning, and prototyping a gcp network. This is a configuration task: choose the command set that satisfies every stated requirement. Small differences — like 'secret' vs 'password' or 'transport input ssh' vs 'all' — change whether the answer is correct. After answering, compare your reasoning against the explanation and wrong-answer breakdown below. Once you have made your selection, read the full explanation to reinforce the concept and understand why each distractor is designed to mislead on exam day.
A company wants to allow on-premises servers to access Google APIs and services through a Dedicated Interconnect without using public IPs. What should they configure?
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Enable Private Google Access on the VPC subnet.
Private Google Access enables on-premises hosts connected via Dedicated Interconnect to reach Google APIs and services using internal IP addresses. When enabled on the VPC subnet, traffic destined for Google APIs is routed through the interconnect without needing public IPs, as the VPC uses its default routes and Cloud NAT-like functionality to forward requests to Google's internal addresses.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
✓
Enable Private Google Access on the VPC subnet.
Why this is correct
This enables private access to Google APIs via the interconnect.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Set up VPC Network Peering.
Why it's wrong here
VPC peering connects VPCs, not for API access.
✗
Configure Private Service Connect.
Why it's wrong here
Private Service Connect is used for accessing managed services, not Google APIs.
✗
Configure Cloud Router with custom route advertisement.
Why it's wrong here
Cloud Router is used for route propagation but does not alone provide private API access.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
Google Cloud often tests the misconception that Private Service Connect or Cloud Router alone can provide private API access from on-premises, but the key requirement is enabling Private Google Access on the subnet to route API traffic through the interconnect without public IPs.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Private Google Access works by leveraging the VPC's default route (0.0.0.0/0) and the Google Cloud's internal infrastructure to forward traffic destined for Google API IP ranges (e.g., 199.36.153.4/30 for restricted.googleapis.com) through the Google backbone without egressing to the public internet. When enabled on a subnet, any VM or on-premises host (via interconnect) using that subnet's internal IP range can reach Google APIs using the private IP of the API endpoint (e.g., private.googleapis.com resolves to 199.36.153.8). This is critical for compliance scenarios where traffic must never traverse the public internet.
KKey Concepts to Remember
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Find the constraint that changes the correct option.
Eliminate answers that are true in general but not in this case.
TExam Day Tips
→Watch for words such as best, first, most likely and least administrative effort.
→Review why wrong options are wrong, not only why the correct option is correct.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
How this comes up in practice
A company's IT admin needs to give a contractor read-only access to production logs without sharing account credentials. Using role-based access control (RBAC) and temporary scoped permissions — not a permanent shared password — is the correct pattern. Questions like this test whether you can apply least-privilege access across cloud identity services.
What to study next
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Designing, planning, and prototyping a GCP network — This question tests Designing, planning, and prototyping a GCP network — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Enable Private Google Access on the VPC subnet. — Private Google Access enables on-premises hosts connected via Dedicated Interconnect to reach Google APIs and services using internal IP addresses. When enabled on the VPC subnet, traffic destined for Google APIs is routed through the interconnect without needing public IPs, as the VPC uses its default routes and Cloud NAT-like functionality to forward requests to Google's internal addresses.
What should I do if I get this PCNE question wrong?
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Question Discussion
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